Chapter Three
Mia tried to come to terms with what Logan had just told her, but it was a lot to absorb.
The woman who’d followed her and made her life a living hell was Logan’s ex-girlfriend?
Part of her was pleased that she finally had a name to associate with the frightening things that’d happened to her during the past year. But another part of her was confused and not at all certain that this woman was actually responsible.
There were things that just didn’t add up.
“Why would Genevieve Devereux follow me and try to kidnap me?” Mia asked.
Logan didn’t know the answer to that. “She’s capable of doing something like this,” he said. But then, he shook his head. “Well, maybe she is. I never pegged her for a kidnapper. But the subterfuge. Following you. The planting of a tracking device. That’s Genevieve.”
“It still doesn’t explain a motive. I don’t even know this woman. Besides, it could have been a coincidence that she was in the black car at the police parking lot on that particular day.”
“When Genevieve is around,” he mumbled, “bad things aren’t usually a coincidence.”
Tanner began to fuss again and Mia knew she had to feed him soon. But where? She didn’t like the idea of taking Logan back to her house. Besides, she was a good fifteen minutes from home and she doubted that her son would want to wait that long for dinner.
“Take this exit,” Logan instructed.
Mia gave him a questioning glance.
“Tanner’s hungry,” was Logan’s response.
Since Mia couldn’t argue with that, she did as he said and took the exit.
“Pull into the parking lot of that fast food place,” he continued. “You can feed the baby while I watch out for that gray car and make some calls. I’ll find out if Genevieve is behind this.”
Because Tanner’s cries were getting louder and more intense, Mia followed that order, too. She parked her car, unfastened her seat belt and reached for her son.
She froze.
Because she realized that Logan would see Tanner. It was stupid and it didn’t make sense, but she was afraid if Logan saw the baby, then there might be some kind of instant bonding. But then, maybe that had already taken place on the afternoon he’d delivered Tanner.
After all, Logan had been the first person to hold her son.
Mia refused to think of Tanner as their son. No. Logan McGrath was simply the sperm donor.
Keeping the blanket over Tanner, she unstrapped him from the infant carrier, scooped him up and brought him into the front seat with her. One glance at Logan and she realized he was watching her every move. Mia had a remedy for that. She shoved her modesty aside, lifted her sweater and opened the cup clasp of her nursing bra.
Her left breast spilled out.
Logan looked away and took out his phone.
Finally she’d won one of the little mental matches going on between them.
As Mia had known he would do, her son latched right on to her nipple and began to nurse. That not only meant he was being fed, but with Tanner’s face pressed to her own body, Logan couldn’t see him.
Mercy, she felt petty.
But she wasn’t going to blindly trust this man who’d charged into her life. Mia had made that mistake when she was fifteen. She’d trusted a stranger. And that trust had gotten her family killed and had left her a dysfunctional mess. She was not only claustrophobic, she had an almost paralyzing fear of guns and knives. It was entirely possible she would never fully trust again. And there was only one person she could blame for that.
Herself.
“I’d like to take you to my house,” Logan said as he pressed some numbers on his tiny phone.
“No.” And Mia left no room for argument. “If your ex-girlfriend is behind this, then your house is off-limits. For that matter, so are you.”
“I own several places.” He ignored her jab. “Genevieve doesn’t know where this house is.”
“I’m still not going there with you. After I’m done nursing Tanner, I’ll make sure no one has followed us and then I’ll drop you off somewhere so that Tanner and I can go home.”
And once there, she would lock the door, turn on the elaborate security system she’d had installed and not go out again unless it was absolutely necessary.
Logan didn’t respond to that, either. That’s because his call connected. Mia heard him request “backup and a clean vehicle,” and he gave the person the address of the fast food place where they were parked. He also ordered someone to go through the surveillance videos of the parking lot of the Wilson Pediatric Clinic, the place where Tanner had just had his checkup.
And the place where the gray car had first followed them.
Of course there’d be surveillance videos of the clinic. She wished she’d thought of that. It might give her some proof as to who this person was.
“Why did you request a car?” Mia wanted to know the moment he ended the call.
“There might be a tracking device on yours,” he calmly answered.
Mia’s reaction certainly wasn’t calm. She hadn’t even considered that. Yet, she should have, especially since it’d already happened once before.
“The clean car should be here in about ten minutes. We’ll trade out vehicles and I’ll have this one searched to see if we can find anything.”
“If there’s a tracking device—”
“I’m keeping watch,” he insisted.
And he was. Logan had one hand on the butt of his gun, and used the other hand to make a second call.
“Logan McGrath,” he greeted the person he phoned. “I need to speak to Collena Drake. No. It’s important. I’ll hold for her.”
Mia recognized the name from the newspaper articles she’d read. Collena Drake was the former San Antonio police sergeant who was now head of the task force to uncover the illegal activity that’d happened at the Brighton Birthing Center. What Mia didn’t know was why Logan was calling her at a time like this.
“Do you think Collena Drake will know something about who’s been following me?” Mia asked.
“Maybe. But even if she doesn’t, I still have to consider that Genevieve is in this neck-deep. Trust me, we don’t want Genevieve involved even in a minor way. She’s got the money and the resources to do all sorts of nasty things. But then, so do I.”
The last part sounded a little like a threat. If the woman was truly guilty, Mia felt like issuing threats—and worse—herself.
“Collena,” Logan greeted a moment later. “I have a problem. I’ve found a possible connected between the Brighton Birthing Center and Genevieve Devereux. I need to go over some things with you. Could you possibly meet me at one-twenty-seven Rosewood Drive on the north side of town? It’s only about ten miles from your office.”
That was Mia’s address. Not that she was surprised that Logan already knew it.
Did he also know that just his mere presence was crushing her heart? She wouldn’t share Tanner with him. Tanner was her life. Her world. And she didn’t want anyone else in that world with them.
Mia continued to listen to his phone conversation, trying to sift through Logan’s responses to see if Collena Drake could provide them with any info. But she was soon distracted